Layered Cake with Caramel and Orange Cream

Today was my daughter's birthday and I made this cake for her to take to school. There were two 9x2x13-inch baking trays she brought back home absolutely empty :)).

Happy Birthday, my sweetheart! I am so happy to have you in my life!

Recipe for 6 layers:

- 2 eggs
- 12 tbsp sugar
- 9 tbsp milk
- 12 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- about 650-700 gr flour
 
Cream sugar with eggs, then add the milk and the oil, mixing well after each tablespoon. Combine baking powder and baking soda with a bit of vinegar, then add to the egg mixture. Gradually add the flour until dough is no longer sticky.

Divide the dough into 6 equal parts, then toll each part into a layer (9/13-inch); bake each layer on the back of a baking sheet, in the preheated oven at 350F.

Recipe for the caramel and orange cream:

- 3 eggs
- 4 tbsp water
- 4 tbsp flour
- 350 gr sugar
- 2 pints milk
- 50 ml orange juice
- orange juice extract, about 1 tsp
- 200 gr butter

In a small saucepan, on low heat, combine sugar with 4 tbsp water and melt until caramelized, stirring continuously. Mix the flour with eggs, add the flour then pour everything over the caramel, and continue stirring. Add the orange juice and the orange extract, then allow it to cook until it resembles a thick pudding. Turn the heat off and allow mixture to cool, but not completely. Cut the butter into small pieces and mix into the caramel cream little by little.

Allow the cream to cool completely, then start assembling the cake: layer, cream, layer and so on, finishing with a cake layer. Let it rest overnight, preferably with some weight on top.

Prepare a glaze from 1/2 stick butter, 100 gr sugar, 100 gr cocoa and about 10 tbsp water. Mix everything on low heat, then pour it over the cake and decorate either with coconut flakes (as I did) or in any way you like.

Enjoy!

Doughnuts

Beautiful, tasty, golden doughnuts! What else to say about these beauties?

Ingredients:

500 gr flour

3 tbsp sugar
2 eggs and 1 yolk
200 ml lukewarm milk
3 tsp dry yeast
3 tbsp vanilla sugar

zest of a lemon
a pinch of salt

Mix the yeast with one tablespoon of sugar and a few drops of milk, then allow it to rise

Lemon Yogurt Vanilla Pie

This is a ridiculously simple recipe, with ingredients that you most likely have in your fridge and pantry right now, but the result is absolutely delicious!

What I used for the pie:

- 8 sheets phyllo dough
- 5 eggs
- 500 gr Greek yogurt
- 125 gr sugar
- raisins
- the zest from one lemon
- vanilla extract to taste

Mix the sugar, lemon zest, vanilla extract and eggs together.

Checkerboard Cake

I haven't been neglecting my blog lately, I just didn't cook that much, since my little one is away at summer camp and I'm putting in long hours in the office. Speaking of that, we have a colleague that recently decided to complete his studies, therefore quit his job and returned to school. As is the tradition in our office, we were going to have a small party for him, and my colleagues asked if I could make the cake. I said yes, and this is the result (the quality of the photos is not that great, they were taken in the office)

I used 9-inch pans.

Peach, Pecans and Cinnamon Cake

My daughter and I were invited to a barbeque upstate today, at one of my colleagues' country house. I knew it was an approximately 3 hours drive to get there, so I needed a cake that would travel well under any weather conditions. I decided to make this one:

This cake can be made with fresh ripe peaches or pears.

Creamy Apricot Rice Pudding

• 3/4 cup uncooked short grain white rice
• 2 cups milk, divided
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup dried apricots, diced
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 orange, zested
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• Freshly grated nutmeg, for serving (optional)

Snow White

This is a layered cake pretty well-known in my childhood under two different names: Snow White or Lemony Cake. I grew up with it, and I made it for my daughter several times as well, while she was a toddler. This time was the first time she fully appreciated it and asked me to make it again sometime soon.

For the layers:

- 3 large eggs

- 100 gr confectioners sugar

- 6 tbsp vegetable oil

- 3 tbsp milk

- 1 tsp baking powder

- one pinch of salt

- 450 gr all-purpose flour

Chocolate Muffins

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you had a nice, trouble-free, filled with love day. Here's my gift to you:

- 250 gr flour
- 10 gr baking powder
- 175 gr sugar
- 2 tablespoons cocoa
- 100 gr finely chopped chocolate 

- 250 ml milk
- 90 ml vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg

- 1 pinch of salt

Three Colours Chocolate Mousse Cake

This recipe is quite easy to make, although quite time-consuming, but it has a great visual impact once it's finished. I made this cake for my daughter's birthday and let me tell you, the children (and their mothers) were impressed, some of them even did not believe it was homemade and not store-bought.

I started out with the base of the cake, which is in fact a brownie recipe. We need:

- 5 eggs

- 200 gr sugar

- 200 ml vegetable oil

- 1/2 cup water

- 250 gr all-purpose flour

- 10 gr baking powder

- 2 tablespoons cocoa